A compilation of 50 diverse news items and links from September 2024, covering topics from politics and economics to science and technology. Longer summary

This post is a compilation of 50 diverse links and news items from September 2024. It covers a wide range of topics including politics, science, technology, economics, and social issues. Some notable items include discussions on kidney donation compensation, personality genetics, fertility rates in Israel, drug decriminalization in Oregon, AI regulation in California, and various political and economic analyses. The post also includes commentary on recent studies, books, and social phenomena. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander examines a review of a paper on serotonin receptors, discussing prediction error, suffering, and the effects of different serotonin receptor activations on problem-solving approaches and psychedelic experiences. Longer summary

Scott Alexander reviews George from CerebraLab's analysis of a paper by Nutt and Carhart-Harris on serotonin receptors. The post explores two main points: the relationship between prediction error and suffering in the context of active inference theory, and the different effects of 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A receptor activation. Scott discusses how these concepts relate to depression, psychedelics, and problem-solving approaches. He also considers George's suggestion that using psychedelics for introspection might be more harmful than using them for fun or practical problem-solving. Shorter summary